Ego deficit is a frequent theme in the clinical literature for both patients of anorexia nervosa and victims of incest, but no previous study has analyzed, compared or contrasted the dynamics of the two groups psychometrically. The present investigation utilized the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) to study the mean profiles of 30 hospitalized anorexic women, 30 female victims of father-daughter incest, and 30 female subjects in a matched contemporary control group. Remarkable similarities were noted between the anorexic and incest groups (and differences from the control group) in characterological elevations on five clinical scales and lower scores on Barron's ego strength (Es) scale. The results are discussed in terms of ego deficits shared by the two groups in spite of their distinctly different developmental and behavioral histories.
References
1.
BemisK. (1978) Current approaches to the etiology and treatment of anorexia nervosa. Psychological Bulletin, 85, 593–617.
2.
BigrasJ.BouchardC. (1966) Different points of view on incest in the adolescent. Canadian Psychiatric Association Journal, 11, 189–204.
3.
BowenM. (1966) The use of family theory in clinical practice. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 7, 345–374.
4.
BrooksB. (1982) Familial influences in father-daughter incest. Journal of Psychiatric Treatment and Evaluation, 4, 117–124.
5.
BruchH. (1973) Eating disorders: Obesity, anorexia nervosa, and the person within. New York: Basic Books.
6.
BruchH. (1979) Anorexia nervosa. In WurtmanJ. J.WurtmanR. J. (Eds.), Nutrition and the brain. New York: Raven. Pp. 101–116.
7.
ButcherJ. N.TellegenA. (1978) Common methodological problems in MMPI research. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 46, 620–628.
8.
CarrollJ.SchafferC.SpensleyJ.AbramowitzS. I. (1980) Family experiences of self-mutilating patients. American Journal of Psychiatry, 137, 852–853.
9.
CohenT. (1981) The incestuous family. Social Casework, 62, 494–497.
10.
CrumptonE.CantorJ.BatisteC. (1960) A factor analytic study of Barron's ego strength scale. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 16, 283–291.
11.
DahlstromW. G.WelshG. S.DahlstromL. E. (1972) An MMPI handbook. Vol. 1. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press. Pp. 155–174.
12.
EriksonE. H. (1968) Identity: Youth and crisis. New York: Norton.
13.
GiovacchiniP. L. (1964) Submerged ego. Journal of American Academy of Child Psychiatry, 3, 430–442.
14.
GottesmanI. I. (1959) More construct validation of the ego-strength scale. Journal of Consulting Psychology, 23342–346.
15.
GrahamJ. R. (1977) The MMPI: A practical guide. New York: Oxford Univer. Press.
16.
HendersonD. J. (1975) Incest. In FreedmanA. M.KaplanH. I.SadockB. J. (Eds.), Comprehensive textbook of psychiatry: II. Baltimore, MD: Williams & Wilkins. Pp. 15–36.
17.
HimelsteinP. (1964) Further evidence of the ego strength scale as a measure of psychological health. Journal of Consulting Psychology, 28, 90–91.
18.
LustigN.DresserJ. W.SpellmanS. W.MurrayT. R. (1966) Incest: A family group survival pattern. Archives of General Psychiatry, 14, 31–40.
19.
MastersonJ. (1977) Primary anorexia nervosa in the borderline adolescent: An objective relation view. In HartocollisP. (Ed.), Borderline personality disorders. New York: International Universities Press. Pp. 475–494.
20.
MeiselmanK. C. (1980) Personality characteristics of incest history psychotherapy patients: A research note. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 9, 195–197.
21.
ScottR. L.FlowersJ. V. (In press) Betrayal by the mother as a factor contributing to psychological disturbance in victims of father-daughter incest: An MMPI analysis. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology.
22.
ScottR. L.StoneD. A. (In press) MMPI profile constellations in incest families. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology.
23.
PelazzoliSelvini M. P. (1974) Self-starvation. London: Chaucer.
24.
SholevarG. P. (1975) A family therapist looks at the problem of incest. Bulletin of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, 3, 25–31.
25.
SmallA. C.MaderoJ.GrossH.TeagnoL.LeibJ.EbertM. (1981) A comparative analysis of primary anorexia and schizophrenics on the MMPI. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 37, 733–736.
26.
TrimboliF.KilgoreR. B. (1983) A psychodynamic approach to MMPI interpretation. Journal of Personality Assessment, 47, 614–626.
27.
TsaiM.Feldman-SummersS.EdgarM. (1979) Childhood molestation: Variables related to differential impacts on psychosexual functioning in adult women. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 88, 407–417.
28.
WarrenW. (1968) A study of anorexia nervosa in young girls. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 9, 27–40.
29.
WingateB. A.ChristieM. J. (1978) Ego strength and body image in anorexia nervosa. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 22, 201–204.
30.
ZellerC. L. (1982) Treatment of ego deficits in anorexia nervosa. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 52, 356–359.
